Cycling news - Miguel Angel Lopez: Astana confirm return after Colombian's abrupt departure from Movistar
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Updated 15/10/2021 at 09:00 GMT
Lopez has been announced as the Kazakh team's "long-term leader", returning to the organisation where he secured two Grand Tour podiums in 2018. He endured a disappointing year having been lured to Movistar, culminating in abandoning the penultimate stage of the Vuelta a Espana having missed a move from the contenders, an incident that caused the Spanish team to rescind his contract.
‘It’s sackable’ – What was Lopez thinking?
Astana have confirmed the signing of Miguel Angel Lopez ahead of the 2022 season.
The Colombian returns to the Kazakh team after a disappointing one-year stint at Movistar that ended after his contract was rescinded.
Lopez has been announced as Astana's "long-term leader", re-signing on a two-year deal 12 months after bringing to a close a six-year stint with his first professional team.
“Coming back to the Astana team is a return home," Lopez said.
"In the world of professional cycling, a rider who wants to keep on moving forward sometimes has to change something in his career, to gain new experience. Sometimes it is a good one, sometimes not.
The main thing is that I am coming home to my team, the team that gave me so much and with which, I am sure, we will be able to live many more wonderful moments.
Lopez struggled for form in 2021, winning the Mont Ventoux Denivele Challenge and a stage of the Vuelta a Espana but failing to finish his two Grand Tour entries.
His withdrawal from the Vuelta came after missing a move from the group of favourites on the penultimate stage, with a disappointed Lopez drawing the fury of his team after abandoning suddenly having begun the day third in the general classification.
It caused Movistar to rescind his contract, with Lopez apparently unhappy that they had committed to his co-leader Enric Mas, who had made the connection.
Lopez apologised after the stage, saying: "We are humans, not machines."
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Miguel Angel Lopez ‘spat the dummy like a spoilt child’
The Colombian twice podiumed at Grand Tours during his previous spell at Astana, finishing third in the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta in 2018.
He replaces Aleksandr Vlasov among Astana's leaders for the 2022 season, with the Russian bound for Bora-Hansgrohe.
Vincenzo Nibali is also returning to the team, who have revamped their clutch of mountain domestiques with the signings of Sebastian Henao, David de La Cruz and Joe Dombrowski.
Gianni Moscon has also been secured from Ineos Grenadiers.
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